Stay Away, My Beloved Cardinal
by LittleDaisy80
Summary: Kazuki and Kahoko are in a mutal love, but Kahoko moves away before Kazuki can confess his feelings towards her. 5 years later, when everybody is in their senior year, Kahoko comes back, still in love with the trumpet player- only to find that Kazuki is dating her best friend. Complications arise and Kahoko has to choose between the one she loves and the one who loves her.
1. Chapter 1

Hey friends! Today I'm gonna start with one of my favorite pairings from La Corda d'Oro that (sadly) did not get together. The storyline is a little bit depressing, and everything is pretty much completely new. Sorry, I just wanted to try something new. Also, to make the story easier, I made Kazuki in the same grade as Kahoko. Hehe. R&R!

**Kazuki**

"Kazuki, how long are you going to keep on waiting?" Kaji asked, smirking at the olive-haired eighth grader.

"What are you talking about?" I replied, trying to feign denseness.

Ryoutaro leaned in. "You know what we're talking about."

"N-no, I really don't," I sputtered. I started pacing towards my desk and pulled out my seat.

Kaji and Ryoutaro followed, standing on either side of me. "Yes you do," Ryoutaro repeated.

Kaji pretended to think. "Doesn't it start with a Hino and ends with a Kahoko?" he said, looking at me, and I felt my face turning red.

"What are you trying to say?"

"Ask her out, you fool." Nami Amou butted in while walking past. "I could get a head start in journalism, since I'm going to join the journalism club when we get to high school."

The people around them nodded in agreement.

"W-wait, does everybody know how I feel?" My heart pulsed. _Surely if everybody else knew, somebody must have told her right? Ack, panick….._

I heard a light giggle. I turned his head to look at the redhead and her group of friends. Kahoko was smiling, tinkering about something that one of her closest friends, Nao had said. She was surrounded also by Manami , Mio, as well as some seventh graders that came from the other hallway, Shoko and Keiichi. Kahoko was just so friendly to everybody, it was almost impossible _not _to like her. She had so many guys after her, it was like a shoujo.

I hung my head. _I honestly really have no chance with her._

**Kahoko**

"Hey Kaho, how's it going with you and Len Tsukimori?" Manami asked.

"T-Tsukimori-san?" I stuttered. _Where did he come from?_

"Although he is a cold, mean jerk, he really treats you differently," Mio added.

Nao nodded along. "It's true."

"He offered you lessons with your violin," Nao said. "He wouldn't do that for anyone else."

"Nobody else plays the violin in the class!" I objected.

"Aoi Kaji does," Manami informed. "You don't see him having private lessons with Tsukimori-kun."

"He plays the viola-," I corrected.

"Guys, that's not true," Shoko interrupted. We all looked at her. She turned slightly pink in the face, but continued. "I personally think Kaho-senpai should date Hihara Kazuki."

There were sounds of realization throughout my friends, and I blushed.

"Is it true?" Keiichi asked in a monotone voice.

I turned the color of my hair. "W-well, even if I did, he probably doesn't like me back…" I murmured.

"He totally does!" Nao yelled, slamming her hands on my desk. Nami came bounding over.

"Who totally does what?" she asked.

"Kazuki-senpai likes Kaho-senpai," Shoko informed. Nami raised her eyebrows.

"It's true," she confirmed. "But do you like him back?" she directed towards Kahoko.

"I-I guess I do," she said, hiding her face behind her bangs. Nami hugged her.

"Then I'll help you!" said the future reporter. "As your bestest bestest bestest friend, I'm going to make you two a couple!"

**Kazuki**

_What was Amou saying to Kaho-chan? Is she telling her my feelings? _

Nami shrieked and hugged Kahoko, saying, "I'll help you!" and something else. They continued to chatter, then everybody gasped.

"Iceland!" Manami screamed.

"How could your father do this to you?" Nami cried. "My poor baby," she murmured, cradling the girl and gently stroking Kahoko's hair.

"It's alright, I'll be back after my dad gets over the divorce," she assured them, but there was a slight crack in her voice.

The bell sounded, meaning that there was 5 minutes until first period started. Shoko and Keiichi returned to their classrooms and the teacher stepped into the room. I glanced at Kahoko, who was a little flustered. I had so much to ask her. _What about Iceland? Divorce? Would I be too nosy if I asked about it?_

After class, I caught up to Kahoko. "Hey Cardinal," I greeted. I gave her that nickname last year because her hair was the color of the feathers on a cardinal.

"Kazuki-kun," she said. Kahoko suddenly turned red, as if remembering something. _So Amou _did _tell her. _

"So, I couldn't help but overhear something about Iceland?" I asked, trying to steer this conversation in a different direction than it was about to head.

She looked up with sad eyes. "My parents got divorced, but my father still loves my mother, so he's taking me to Iceland with him to have a little time away to think."

"Why does he have to take you with him? Can't you stay here?"

"I chose to stay with my father during the time of the divorce happening, but I didn't know that he would go to Iceland. Since my father has custody of me, I have to go with him," she explained. "I'm only going to be here for another 2 weeks."

"Why didn't you tell us earlier?" I asked.

"Well, we were having exams and I didn't want to distract my friends…"

"That's upsetting!" I exclaimed. "I wish you could stay here."

We both turned red. "S-sorry, that came out weird…" I apologized.

Kahoko giggled. "It's fine," she said. "I'm kind of glad you said that."

I looked away to hide my boiling face when I noticed the time on the clock.

"Oh, we have to get to class! There's only a few minutes left, and I still have to go to my locker!"

"Same here." I waved goodbye to my birdie and we went our separate directions. _I've decided. I'm going to ask her out before she moves. I'll make the long distance thing work. I still have another 2 weeks to confess._

7 days later

"What?" I screamed.

"That's right. Her flight got moved earlier, so she had already left this morning," Nami said.

_So I never got the chance to confess, _I mentally punched myself for not working up the courage earlier.

"Lover boy, I have her new address, if you want it," Nami snapped her fingers in front of my face.

"Oh! Yes, thanks," I replied. I watched as she searched through her pockets and bag, but came up empty.

"I guess I left it at home," she said apologetically. _That's too bad. I would have written to her about my feelings right now._ "But if I had your phone number, then I could call or text it to you when I find it," she suggested.

I agreed, thinking it was okay and recited my cell phone number. Nami gave me hers and went to her seat, slipping the piece of paper into the front pocket of her school bag, a slight smile of her face.

**Kahoko**

I stepped out of the taxi and looked around. I was going to live in Hafnarfjörður, a city right next to the ocean and close to the capital, Reykjavík. I could barely speak English, let alone Icelandic, so I had absolutely no clue how to pronounce these cities. My father chose this city to live in because of the many festivals and urban activities.

The driver unpacked my bags from the trunk and I gave him a gracious amount of the money my dad had given me before he left. The driver had driven me from the international airport in Keflavik all the way here.

I thanked the driver and followed the map I printed off online. It was a simple route, and I noticed all the differences from here and Japan- first of all, there was a Viking statue in the middle of a roundabout. Or at least I hope it's a statue. (It looks pretty real to me.) Since I was going towards the town center, I was relieved to see that there wasn't a suffocating amount of statues of Vikings in the town. It surrounded a bay, which further out went into the ocean.

I navigated the twists and turns of the small roads, noticing that there were "elven" homes where I passed. I heard that the houses were built on boulders and lava, where elves tend to live. I let out a snicker. I'll be darned if I saw an elf.

After 5 minutes of struggling to balance all my large suitcases, I reached my home. It was one of the smaller houses in the town, but it looked alright to me. I knocked on the door.

"Helloooo! Dad! I'm here!" I yelled. Moments later, my father threw open the door and grabbed me in a fatherly bear hug.

"Kaho, my dear girl, you're finally here! Papa has missed you!" I lightly patted his back, hoping that he would release me soon and let me in the house to unpack. He let me go, and picked up one of my larger suitcases and swung it over his shoulder. My dad might be a sad, divorced man, but it doesn't affect the fact that he still is one of the strongest people I've ever known.

"I already have the furniture moved into your room," he chattered. "I also made sure your room was painted an apple green color, since that's the color you've always wanted."

I nodded, rolling my bags.

"Along with that, your furniture is a white color. It gives a homely feel and fits well with the story of elves here. I really don't believe that, but don't tell our neighbors, they're major believers in elves. They gave me a miniature statue of an elf, but it freaked me out a bit, so I stuck it in the garden. It could pass as a gnome."

"Dad," I interrupted. He looked at me. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, honey, I'm fine. Icelandic isn't hard to learn once you get used to it-,"

"That's not what I meant," I cut off again. "I meant about you and Mom."

His eyes darkened for a split second, but returned to their bright cheeriness before I could blink.

"I'm getting used to it. I decided to buy a body pillow to fill up the empty space next to me when I sleep, so it's all good." He continued to talk, and I decided not to push it anymore. Once we got to my room, he left me to myself to unpack. I could understand why- he's not even done packing himself. There were still taped up boxes lying around in the hallway, probably more in other rooms in the house.

My room was, like he said, a light apple green color. There was a Victorian-like frame going around the walls near the ceiling. I had a large overhead light, along with some lights built into the top corners of my room. My bed was queen size, with pink and white floral bedding with numerous throw pillows. I had a window seat that overlooked the shining bay. There was a vanity and a desk with elegant carvings evenly spaced throughout the large room. To add to the extravagance, I had a white moon chair in a corner with a white furry rug. _Wow, dad really was serious when he said major construction to my room,_ I thought.

I stepped into the bathroom connected to my room. The walls were a pearly white, but the ceiling was a light violet. A mirror went across the length of the room and there were lights spread out above the mirror, the bulbs held in flower-like holders facing downwards. My shower had a bath, and the space was gracious.

I stepped back into my main room and breathed in. This place was really nice. I had my dream room- dad had actually listened to all my wants, from the main things like a green room with a connecting bathroom down to all the white furniture.

I started unpacking, placing my laptop on the desk, and pulling out some hangers and hanging up my formal clothes that I didn't want wrinkled. I pulled on pajamas, and sat down in the chair by my desk.

I checked my email and saw 9 emails from my classmates asking about how Iceland was and to send them pictures. Manami said to send pictures of sexy guys I see. I laughed and cupped my chin in my palm. _Even though it's so nice here, it's still not the same without my friends._

I continued clicking through the emails, and was surprised when I saw one from Len.

_**Dear Kahoko-san,**_

_**How is Iceland? I hope it's a decent temperature, considering it's not actually supposed to be cold. (**__Not as cold as you, _I thought.) _**Everybody was frantic that you had left a week earlier than planned, especially Hihara. Apparently he had something important to say to you, but you were gone before he had the chance. Make sure you keep practicing the violin. Just because I'm not teaching you in person doesn't mean that you can slack off. I still plan on you keeping your word on being better than me.**_

_**Make sure you also concentrate on school. Stay safe.**_

_**Sincerely,**_

_**Tsukimori Len**_

Gosh, he sounded like my mother. I sent a reply to everybody who emailed me and also replied to Len, saying that Iceland had good weather, ignoring the part about Kazuki, and assured him that I would keep on playing the violin. I jokingly added if he wanted me to send him my report card every time I got one back. I also mentioned my phone number, considering I won't be lugging around my laptop everywhere, so I would check my texts more.

A few moments after I had replied, a "bloop" sound went off and a chat box popped up on the side of my screen. Len had chatted me with a, "Hello this is Tsukimori."

I giggled a bit at his seriousness, but nonetheless replied, "Hello Tsukimori. This is Hino typing."

Len: How is Iceland so far?

Me: It's gorgeous. I have an amazing view from my bedroom window. Do you want a picture?

Len: Sure.

I took a picture with my computer webcam, and sent it directly to Len over the message box.

**Len**

I can't believe it. I actually had the confidence to chat Kahoko. I wanted to slap myself after I chatted her as if I were writing a business letter, but she replied back with equal seriousness. I allowed myself a chuckle and continued to chat.

She sent a picture of a beautiful sunset that she could see from her window. I envied her a bit, seeing that my window was not so entertaining.

Me: You're lucky. From my window, I have a lovely view of a tree.

Kahoko: Haha! Iceland is a very pretty place, I feel happy to live here, although I miss you and the rest of the class.

Me? She missed me? I know she said the rest of the class, but _me_? She actually missed _me_?

"Len-sama, it is time for dinner," a maid said through my door.

"Alright, I'll be down soon," I replied, slightly disappointed as I had to stop chatting with Kahoko.

Me: I have to go eat dinner now. I'll email you later.

Kahoko: Okay. I'm hungry too, I think I'll go get a snack. Also, I don't think I'll check my email as much when school starts, so in the reply I sent I mentioned my cell phone number. I gave it to everybody else too because I'll check it more often than my email.

Me: Alright, I'll keep that in mind. Here's mine: (XXX-XXX-XXXX) I have to go now. Goodbye.

Kahoko: Okay! Bye bye! :)

I sat back and breathed out. I was finally getting closer to Kahoko, the one girl who looks past my family names and looks at me, by myself.

**So…. How was it? I really want to live in Iceland myself, so I just have Kahoko my dreams. Lucky girl. She's got my dream room, city, guys, friends, talent… Um sooo- Yes! Please review this story! Although this is a Kahoko and Kazuki story, Kaho's going to end up with Len in the end. I'm sorry, it's how I see the story fit. If you want, I could add in an alternate ending for when Kahoko ends up going with Kazuki. Just tell me in the reviews. Thanks! ~LittleDaisy80**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! So I really don't like doing flashbacks because… I don't really know, when I read, I tend to skip over them… so I'm going to try to avoid it by doing the past first then going into the present… but I might have to add in a few here in there, so I hope you don't mind!**

**Kazuki**

I was halfway through my B-flat minor scale when my phone rang. I walked over to my old Motorola Razor cellular mobile with my trumpet in hand and flipped it up. _1 new text message from: (XXX) XXX-XXXX. _I clicked on it, and the message popped up.

_**Hey, Hihara! It's Amou Nami. I just wanted to let you know that I have Kahoko's address and e-mail, if you want to contact her.**_

I immediately fired back a reply. _**Yes, thanks!**_

I placed the slim phone in my pocket, walked back over to my music stand and continued warming up. My ringtone sounded again, and Kahoko's e-mail and address floated across the screen. I recorded her contact information down in my phone, sent another thank you to Nami, and tried to play again.

I kept missing notes for some reason, and my heart was pounding in my chest. I sighed, and then put away my trumpet. _That must be it, _I thought.

I sat down in front of my computer and went onto my e-mail account. After nervously hovering my pointer over "compose a new message", I clicked on it and carefully typed in Kahoko's e-mail.

_**Dear Kahoko,**_

_**Hi. It's Hihara Kazuki, from class? **_I deleted that. Of course she knew I was in her class. Stupid!

I tried again. _**Hey, Cardinal! It's Kazuki. Nami gave me your e-mail. **_That was much better than before.

_**I heard that you live in Hafnarfjor- a rahrahrah (how do you pronounce it?) and it's really pretty. I'm a little worried about one thing- are you going to start worshipping elves? I mean, I'll have nothing against you, but it's a little strange…**_

_**If you could, can you sent me some pictures? I would love to show Haruki that I have a friend that lives in an exotic country. Well, please reply!**_

_**From, **_

_**Hihara Kazuki**_

I sat back in satisfaction, and pressed send. I put all my work into that one message. I was very proud of myself.

One new message was in my inbox. Did Kahoko already respond?

_**Dear e-mail user,**_

_**Your message could not be sent, for the e-mail you typed in was invalid. Please try again.**_

_**Sincerely, **_

_**The E-mail Team**_

I hung my head. I went to my sent box and checked the e-mail. It was typed in exactly as Nami had written it. I texted her if the e-mail was the correct one, explaining what had happened.

**Nami **

My cell phone vibrated, and I scrambled over to check the message sender. _One new message: Hihara Kazuki._

I opened the message and read it.

_**Hey Amou, are you sure the e-mail you gave me was the right one? It's khino19 , right? I tried sending a message to her, but it said the e-mail was invalid.**_

I gripped the front of my uniform skirt. _So he already tried to e-mail her. _Of course it wasn't the right one. It was khino90 , not 19. But I wasn't about to tell him that. Also, the address I gave him was incorrect. I looked it up online, and had it switched to a home near the airport in Keflavik. Kahoko never knew how I felt about him, and thought only about herself. Everybody says that she's so nice, and pretty, and smart, but nobody thought to look at it in a way that screamed that she was selfish.

Now that she's gone, I finally have a chance with the one I have looked at even longer that she has.

Why her? I knew it was immature to refer to these ways to try to get him, but I was here first. I was the one who introduced the two of them to each other. _I was the one who got hurt when the two of them fell in love with each other. _I couldn't do anything to stop it. All my friends and classmates were on their side.

'No, Nami! Let the two lovebirds have time alone,' they would giggle and always push them together. What about me? Just because I didn't tell the whole world that I liked Kazuki, doesn't mean that I don't show that I do! I would skip out on walking with Shoko and Manami, just so I could arrive earlier and talk with Kazuki, who had also arrived earlier for track. That was the only time _alone_ I had with him. Kahoko had him after school, when then both would head towards the music rooms in the high school.

I gritted my teeth. I would talk about neutral things, like journalism, or track, or school lunches, whatever! But in the end, it would always lead up to the redhead. _Always, always! _He would ask me advice on love for her. What she liked, her interests, her favorite foods, flowers, chocolate… It made me sick.

I can't say that I hated her, because that would just be selfish. She never did anything mean to me, she never stabbed me in the back. She invited me to parties and never made me feel left out when she hung out with Shoko, Keiichi, Ryotaro, Kazuki, Kaji, and Manami. Even though they would talk mostly about music, she would find some way to weave me into the mix.

But she was selfish. She never bothered figuring out why I always wanted to be partners with Kazuki during class instead of her. Or why I always did mock reports on the track star. It's like she expected me to be okay with them together. She had boys falling all over her feet, but she had to pick Kazuki!

On the other hand, things were different now. Kahoko wasn't in Japan anymore. It was just me and him, and I won't let anyone else come in. I was completely selfish myself. I'll be hated. I could risk losing all of my friends. But for those few weeks, days, hours, even minutes of bliss and peace with him- it was worth it. That's how much I love him.

_**No it should be the right one, **_I sent back with shaking fingers.

**Kahoko**

I was sitting at my desk, filling out school forms so I could register for Hafnarfjörður's local private high school. My father knew that I was going to have a rough time in high school if I went into it blindly, without even knowing how to speak Icelandic, so we were going to have a special class for me to learn some.

I filled in my name, last name, middle initial, date of birth… then I went to Google Translate. Like, what is "Borgin fæðingu"? {Author's note: City of birth :)}

"Kaho!" my father called from downstairs. "Time for dinner!"

"Coming!" I yelled back. Stacking the papers neatly and evenly, I placed my fountain pen on top of the stack and went downstairs.

After I had reached the counter, my dad handed me a gold, card-sized envelope. "It came in the mail," he explained.

I carefully slid my finger under the flap and slowly ripped it open. Even though everybody gets bills and things in the mail, it was nice to get a good down to earth letter every once in a while. I turned the envelope over and looked at the sender.

_**Hamai Misa**_

There was a return address, and then in the center, dented into the paper in silver, was my name in a fancy print.

It was an invitation to a concert she was holding in Reykjavík with her family. _So Len will be there,_ I thought. I never heard Len's mother play, although I've heard nothing but positive things about her and her husband. They must be supreme or extremely loaded to organize a concert in Iceland. Included were 2 pairs of tickets.

I slid the silver piece of cardstock back into the envelope and placed it back on the counter.

My dad looked at me quizzically. "How do you feel about going to a concert?" I asked.

**Len**

_**2 weeks later**_

I was standing backstage, gripping onto my violin. It was finally the day. Did Kahoko come? We didn't ask for RSVP's, so I really had no way of knowing. But if she did come, then I would have to. Yes, be confident, Len! You practiced a lot the last 2 nights. _You can do this!_

Turning to a black painted wall, I said, "Why, hello Hino-san. It's a pleasure seeing you tonight. Would you like to go with m-me to see some s-sights after t-this?" I knocked the bottom of my bow onto my forehead. Len, you can't stutter! _But it's a lot harder now that I know that the time is drawing near! _I argued back with myself.

I heard 2 giggles behind the curtain, and I whipped my head around. "Who's there?"

My mother and my father appeared from behind the velvet, and I turned red. "Len, are you having a good time practicing?" my father politely teased.

"D-don't tell me you heard all of that…" I lowered my gaze when they exchanged looks.

"Be confident!" my mother said. "You're Tsukimori Len! Hino Kahoko can't resist you."

"Also, you got your looks from me, so you're in good hands," my father added. As the concert opening time drew closer, I peeked at the crowd through the curtain.

Right in the center of the second row was the girl with the flaming hair. I dropped the curtain just in case she could catch a glimpse of me blushing at her like a ridiculous fool. I mentally glared at my parents, who had arranged the seating chart. Of course they had to put her right where I could see her. I took a deep breath and waited on standby.

**Kahoko**

Hamai Misa really gave us good seats. I was in the second row, right in front of the center of the stage. Dad was sitting next to me, wearing a dark navy suit with a wine colored tie.

I had my hair up in a French twist with the fallouts curled. I had gone with simple pearl earrings and a double layered necklace. I was wearing a plain black dress that had a large, flouncy skirt. Around the waist I had tied a red ribbon tied in a bow that matched my father's tie. I also had made the terrible decision of wearing black pumps that were not broken into, and very, very uncomfortable.

A speaker announced the concert's start, and the stage lights shown on the trio nicely. I was surprised that Len looked a lot like his father, although the blue-haired boy had longer hair that went to his eyelids, while his father had hair slightly longer that a buzz cut.

They performed perfectly, creating a standing ovation from the crowd. When they turned around to bow to the audience, I swear Len looked straight at me. I blushed and waved. He kept his face the same, but waved back.

There was a large ballroom near the back of the building where the majority of the crowd stayed to talk to the family and have some refreshments.

I walked to the nearest table and picked up a plastic wine glass of water. I fished up another one for my father, who was nowhere to be seen. I started away from the table, straining my neck to see where he was among the rather large crowd. I wasn't looking where I was going, and ran straight into Len.

"Oh! Len-kun," I said, surprised. He nodded in response. "Have you seen my father?"

"He's over there, talking to my parents," he pointed to a trio. My dad was laughing, and holding a drink. Well, guess I don't need the second water I picked up.

"Here," I offered to Len. He looked at it questioningly. "It's water."

"Oh. Alright, thank you," Len responded, gingerly taking the drink from my fingers.

After taking a few sips in silence covered in music by the small orchestra playing in the corner, I said, "You performed really nicely tonight."

"Thank you," he said, gazing at me. I might have turned red again, if it weren't for the girl around our age, maybe a little older, who came in between us.

"Tsukimori Len-kun! Your performance was absolutely stunning," she gushed. The girl had blonde hair that was strikingly similar to Keiichi's hair color. She wore a deep sapphire dress that looked like it had been painted on her, and she had breasts. Big ones. I consciously looked down at mine that seemed to inflate at my look. The girl held Len's arm, looking up at him in admiration.

I cleared my throat. She looked at me, her blue eyes iced over. "Kahoko-san, this is Touga Shiori. She's the daughter of one of the orchestra players in the back," Len explained, trying to pull away from Shiori's grasp.

"What instrument do you play?" she asked almost mockingly.

"V-violin," I responded. I think she was another obsessed fan of Len's.

"V-violin?" she sneered. "Are you unsure of what instrument you play? Or do you play the v-viola? Or the c-cello?"

"Touga-san, please stop," Len chided.

"Sorry, Len," she pouted, sticking her bottom lip out in a childish way. Both Len and I were surprised at her informality with Len's name.

"How long have you known each other?" I asked, making sure I didn't stutter or else Shiori would make fun of me again.

"Two days!" she exclaimed. "Two days, are we're already so close, right Len?"

"Not very," he replied curtly. "Now, if you'll excuse me, Kahoko-san, Touga-san…"

He left, leaving me alone with a glaring girl. "Look, what are you to Len?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"_What are you to Len?"_

"I'm his classmate," I said.

"Good. If you were anything more to him, I would ruin you," she said, turning her face away in disgust.

"Well, what's your relation to him?" I asked, getting more and more annoyed by this girl. I sipped my drink to prevent my mouth from spitting some words I would regret.

"_I'm _going to marry him."

With that, I spit my drink out. "_What did you say?_"

"Yuck, you're disgusting!" she wailed, dabbing at the wet stains with a napkin.

"Answer my question or else I'll dump this thing on you," I threatened.

"I'm going to marry him, you sick cow!"

"Did he propose to you?" Pretty sure that he did not and will not.

Shiori glared up at me. "Not yet, but he will. My father is a bass player and is on good terms with his dad. Believe me; I'll get him to be mine, so stay away."

"Whatever you say," I blew her off with a wave of my hand, and walked away.

Behind me, I heard her whisper, "Bitch."

Now that you saw my rather mean side, let me tell you one thing- I do not dislike people easily. I'll try to look at their good points, and befriend them. But if you are sassy, self-centered, rude to me, and dress like a hooker, then I will not stop myself from being a reflection of you.

Rather satisfied with myself, I went to my father to ask him if we could leave, but he was still talking with Len's parents. I showed up at his side, and he chuckled.

"Here she is! This is my daughter, Hino Kahoko."

"Nice to meet you," I said, bowing my head slightly. "How do you do?"

"I'm splendid," Mrs. Tsukimori said. Mr. Tsukimori nodded. I can relatively see where Len got his silent ice streak. "I heard you play the violin as well?" she asked.

"Yes, though I'm quite amateur," I said, blushing slightly. I'm not being modest; it's true.

"Nonsense," Mr. Tsukimori spoke up. "If my son is willing to take you up on lessons, you must have quite the potential."

"Len-kun told you about me?" I asked, surprised.

Laughing, Mrs. Tsukimori shook her head. "We have our little observers around the school. Our Len would never do something as to tell us about his school life."

As if on cue, Len appeared. "I heard my name?"

**Len**

I went to stand next to my father, across from Kahoko.

"Yes, we were just talking about Hino-san's violin playing," my father said.

"It was very nice of you to give her lessons, Tsukimori-kun," Mr. Hino said, smiling slightly at me.

I looked at her, and she shook her head, as if saying that she wasn't the one who told him.

"Mother? Father?" They looked at each other, grinning.

"We have our connections," was all they said. Then they engaged in a conversation about politics, which I took no interest in. It seemed the same for Kahoko, who had her body angled away from her father, looking down in her near-empty plastic wine glass.

_You can do this, Len. Believe in yourself._

"_Kahoko-san, it was a pleasure seeing you tonight. Would you like to see some sights with me after this?"_

"_Absolutely, Len-kun! I would love to," she said, turning red._

_Smiling at her, I said, "Would you like to go now?"_

"_Len-kun…" she gazed at me with those soft amber eyes. "Absolutely."_

"_Also, you don't have to call me Len-kun. You can just call me Len," I dared to say._

"_Oh, well in that case, you can also just call me Kahoko."_

"_Kahoko…"_

"_Len…"_

I snapped out of my imaginary theatre, and turned back to Kahoko, hands sweating. I took a deep breath.

"K-Kahoko-san, it was a p-pleasure s-seeing you tonight," I stammered, clamping and unclamping my fists.

"You as well, Len-kun," she replied uncertainly. _You're making her feel weird! Act confident! Be confident!_

"W-would you like to see some sights with me after this?" I said quickly. That did not go as well as I wanted to at all. I'm such a failure at asking a girl out. _What am I going to do with my life?_

"Actually, I have a lot of forms to fill out for school, so I can't," she said apologetically.

"Oh, alright. I'll see you later, then," I said. She nodded, and I walked away. It was only later that I had realized that she had knocked me down and rejected my offer. Now looking back at her, she looked fine. If I had overreacted at the time, and figured out what she had said, then I would have been screwed. I would have flipped out and probably would have scared her.

I am thankful for my slow mind with girls sometimes.

But right now, I want to go in a corner and die of embarrassment.

**Kahoko**

Wow, I had no clue Len would ask me out on a date! I wonder why I had said no. I really don't have any forms to fill out, my gut just said no. Why, I wonder.

It couldn't be because of that trumpet player… right? It couldn't have been more than a simple crush, right? No matter what everyone said, Kazuki never did anything to confirm his feelings for me, so I probably had a one sided love, right? Right? _Right? !_

**Did you guys like it? Is it going in a good direction? AM I GOING TO LOSE READERS BECAUSE I'M NOT MAKING THINGS ALL ABOUT KAZUKI AND KAHOKO? AM I WASTING A LOT OF TIME? I'M SO SORRY, I'M SUCH A FAILURE IN LIFE! Well, I'll try to get the romance going on. I'm trying to establish that Len likes Kahoko, Kahoko might like Len, but she still is in love with Kazuki, while Kazuki likes Kahoko back, but Nami is trying her luck at him now that Kahoko isn't in Japan anymore. I know you are all thinking, **_**Wow, Nami's a slut!**_** No, that's not the point I'm trying to make. Nami feels upset that her own best friend didn't notice her feelings about the guy they both like. And that sorta twisted her a bit. **

**Also, those who are waiting for the next chapter in "A New Experience", I'm working on it! I'll update that story before the next chapter in this one. **

**Please review and say your thoughts and feelings so far! ~LittleDaisy80**


	3. Author's Note

I'm really sorry I have not been updating this story! It was sort of just a random idea, but since you guys seem to really like the start of it, I'll try to update as soon as I can! Since it's winter break, I'll have plenty of time to come up with new ideas! Sorry for taking so long to leave a note!

Merry Christmas and happy holidays!

Love,

LittleDaisy80


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